1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image pickup device which generate a composite image by multiple shots, and which generates a panoramic image with a widened imaging view field.
Priority is claimed on Japanese Patent Application No. 2008-210565, filed Aug. 19, 2008, the content of which is incorporated herein by reference.
2. Background Art
In recent years, in conjunction with a trend toward increasing functional sophistication, a variety of functions have been loaded into digital cameras to appeal to users. Among these, a panoramic imaging function is one of the functions with high appeal, however, as its operation is complex and difficult, and as it also involves many cases of failure in photography, it cannot be said to be a function that is mastered by the great majority of users. By utilizing the panoramic imaging function, the user takes multiple shots while shifting the imaging view field, and after-mentioned overlap portions are stitched each other. As a result, a panoramic image corresponding to picked up image with a range wider than the range possible with ordinary picked up image can be obtained.
Here, the overlap portion will be explained. The overlap portion are end parts of the picked up images. Generating composite images is conducted by stitching the picked up images so that the mated end parts of the picked up images overlap. In this case, the stitching position can be determined by confirming whether or not the subject images of the overlap portions match.
However, as described below, the procedure of the panoramic imaging is very troublesome. First, it is necessary for the user to remember the subject image of the overlap portion at each time when a single shot is taken. Thereafter, if the imaging view field is, for example, shifted widthwise, the user must take care so that vertical positioning does not change. Furthermore, after the user has completed shifting the imaging view field, he/she judges whether or not the overlap portion matches the pre-shift imaging view field, and takes the shot if it matches. After shooting, the user remembers the next overlap portion, and repeats the above-described operations.
However, if the overlap portions from before and after the shifting of the imaging view field are shifted (if a vertical shift occurs when moving the imaging view field in the widthwise direction, and shooting), there is the problem that the imaging range in the direction that is not the direction of movement (the vertical direction in the case where the imaging view field is moved widthwise) is narrowed, because a rectangular region is extracted from the image that is finally obtained by stitching together all the images. Otherwise, in the case where the subject images of the overlap portions from before and after the shifting of the imaging view field do not match, there is the problem that one cannot paste them together, or that one forcibly stitching them together with the result that an unnatural image is obtained.
As a method of solving the aforementioned problems, in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application, First Publication No. 2005-311789, a digital camera is recorded which can obtain a panoramic image by simple operation. This digital camera detects the angles in the yaw direction and pitch direction of the camera body at the time of shooting of the panoramic image, causes a CCD image sensor to take multiple shots at photographic intervals based on angular velocity in the yaw direction, conducts generating composite image processing and alignment with respect to the multiple sets of image data based on the photographic intervals and angular velocity in the pitch direction, and generates the data of a single panoramic image.